5. And they usually land there for paranoid, ignorant, and reactionary reasons. nt

7. Apparently you can Opt-out but

there is a one-time $75 fee and $10 per month surcharge.

I found this:

"Consumers Power Alliance, a resident organization funded via donations by concerned residents like you, believes so. CPA is fighting SCE’s smart meter program and has a legal team that has challenged SCE’s smart meter program and opt-out fees. CPA consequently filed a protest with the CPUC regarding SCE’s opt-out program and fees.

In response, the CPUC has temporarily suspended SCE’s opt out fees, effective June 4, for 120 days while they look into this matter. CPA, meanwhile, is encouraging residents to opt-out of SCE smart meters today, and has issued an alert and advice to SCE customers. CPA is also encouraging SCE customers to file complaints with CPA’s hired law firm (read more below) because these consumer complaints are having a strong effect on the SCE opt out program."

I called SCE and they said they are aware of it but will charge the fee regardless.

I've had several discussions with people about both meters and smart grid.

First, often the higher bills are due to the older meters mis-measuring electrical use; customers were getting free power for years. Some complain, others are grateful for the freebies.

Second, time of use really impacts cost of generation. Times of high demand require more expensive and less environmentally friendly forms of generation, so if you apply the rules of supply and demand on an hourly basis, higher costs during high demand make sense.

But it takes smart meters to know at what times your usage is high or low.

Another way to look at the same dynamic is to say that smart meters make it possible to know when you're shifting load to low demand so that you can be charged LESS for it.

..."Decoupling broke this link. Here's how it works: Every few years, state regulators determine how much revenue utilities need to cover certain authorized costs. They then set electricity rates at a level that allows utilities to recover these costs, based on a forecast of sales. If actual sales are above or below this forecast, then revenues are "trued up." Over-collections are given back to consumers in the form of reduced rates, and under-collections are eliminated with modest rate increases (typically pennies a month for the average household)...."

Once upon a time, they did. Nowadays, they stand to make more profit by promoting energy efficiency and conservation.

10. Do You Have Wireless Internet or a Cellphone? Or a Microwave Oven?

12. I think the concern is

that the waves from a smart meter are many times stronger than that of a cell phone. I've read 100 times stronger though I'm not sure what that translates to in terms of health risk, or if it's even true.